Opening  Doors  in 
Latin  America 


The  Board  of  Foreign  Missions 
of  the  Presbyterian  Church  in  the  U.  S.  A. 
156  Fifth  Avenue,  New  York 


A GUATEMALAN  INDIAN 


The  Key  to  the 
Guatemalan  Situation 

If  variety  is  the  spice  of  life,  Mission 
work  in  the  County  (Departamento)  of 
Quezaltenango  may  safely  be  described  as 
spicy.  This  county  to  which  we  seek  to 
minister,  varies  in  altitude  from  two  hun- 
dred to  twelve  thousand  feet  above  sea 
level.  It  includes  the  tropics  with  their 
intense  heat  and  luxuriant  growth  of 
precious  woods,  sugar  cane,  bananas,  etc., 
extends  up  into  a temperate  zone  where 
coffee  plantations  abound,  then  comes  a 
cooler  zone  where  there  are  occasional 
frosts  and  where  corn  is  the  chief  crop, 
then  some  high  plateaus  where  only  wheat 
can  be  successfully  cultivated,  then  again 
some  steep  mountain  sides  covered  with 
pine,  while  in  the  very  center  of  the  county, 
visible  from  nearly  all  parts  of  it,  towers 
the  mighty  volcano,  Santa  Maria,  whose 
eruption  some  ten  years  ago  nearly  de- 
stroyed the  town  of  Quezaltenango. 

But  if  there  is  variety  in  the  climate  and 
the  flora  of  the  county  there  is  even 
greater  variety  in  those  in  whom  we  are 
more  directly  interested,  i.  e.,  the  people. 
We  have  here  in  the  county  of  Quezalte- 
nango a foreign  colony  of  perhaps  one  thou- 
sand, the  largest  groups  being  of  Germans, 
Spaniards,  and  Chinese.  Then  there  are  the 
educated  Guatemalans  of  Spanish  descent, 
more  or  less  pure.  They  are  plantation 
owners,  lawyers,  physicians,  merchants. 
Next  in  order  come  the  hand-workers.  For 
be  it  known  that  we  have  little  or  no 
machinery  work  here.  Our  shoes  and 
clothes  are  all  made  to  order.  Our  fabrics 
are  woven  on  hand-looms,  etc.,  etc.  The 
people  who  do  this  work,  the  weavers, 


3 


dyers,  carpenters,  shoemakers  and  hatters 
along  with  the  small  store  and  saloon- 
keepers, are  Ladinos,  that  is,  of  European 
descent  but  with  a large  proportion  of 
Indian  blood.  But  lower  still  in  the  social 
scale  comes  the  Indian  himself,  who  com- 
prises the  bulk  of  the  population.  He  is 
day  laborer,  pack  animal,  domestic  servant 
and  what  not.  In  this  county  he  is  better 
off  than  in  some  other  parts  of  the  republic. 
He  usually  owns  a small  patch  of  land  in 
the  highlands  where  his  wife  and  family 
cultivate  corn  or  wheat  and  keep  a few 
pigs  or  sheep.  But  he,  poor  fellow,  finds 
little  time  to  help  them.  First  he  must 
serve  in  the  army,  from  three  to  five  years, 
sometimes  being  stationed  near  home,  some- 
times far  away.  Home  from  his  service 
in  the  army  he  is  soon  called  out  to  aid 
on  some  public  work,  building  a new  rail- 
road line,  a bridge  or  similar  improvement, 
receiving  four  or  five  cents  a day  and 
boarding  himself.  A few  weeks  or  months 
of  this  and  he  goes  home  again.  Before 
long  the  smooth-tongued  “habilitador”  of 
some  large  coffee  or  banana  plantation 
appears  in  his  town  with  money  to 
lend,  easy  money,  and  the  Indian  takes 
the  bait.  In  a few  days  it  is  gone,  liquor 
and  a few  gaudy  trappings  have  made  away 
with  it.  Then  come  the  long  hard  days 
of  payment.  The  strong  arm  of  the  law 
hands  Mr.  Indian  over  to  the  tender 
mercies  of  the  plantation  owner  whose 
money  he  has  borrowed  and  he  must  work 
off  his  debt  at  ten  cents  a day  and  board 
himself.  If  he  wants  more  money  he  can 
get  it  up  to  a certain  limit,  it  being  to 
the  plantation  owner’s  interest  to  keep 
him  in  debt.  The  Indian  thus  becomes  a 
virtual  slave,  for  one  plantation  owner  can 
sell  the  debt  to  another  and  the  Indian 
must  follow  his  debt.  The  Indian  carries 


4 


us  all  on  his  back  and  receives  small  thanks 
for  his  trouble. 

And  now  what  of  the  religious  and  moral 
conditions  of  these  varied  classes?  The 
foreign  colony  is  here  for  money.  It  is 
business  first,  last  and  all  the  time.  Their 
morals  are  the  bourgeois  morals  of  their 
class  in  all  the  world.  They  are  no  better 
and  perhaps  no  worse  than  they  would  be 
at  home.  The  Germans  are  nominal  Protest- 
ants or  Jews  for  the  most  part,  the  Spanish, 
French,  Italians,  etc.,  nominal  Catholics, 
Chinese  nominal  Buddhists,  but  for  all  of 
them  business  is  first  and  religion  second. 
“Do  you  think  I’m  here  for  my  health?” 
is  their  common  answer  to  any  appeal  to 
public  sentiment  or  religious  endeavor. 

The  educated  Guatemalans  are  for  the 
most  part  nominal  Catholics,  but  the  men 
are  almost  entirely  estranged  from  the 
Church.  Spiritualism  has  a very  strong 
hold  among  them  and  seems  to  be  growing 
in  strength  rather  than  waning.  Positivism 
was  and  still  is  a force  also  in  this  class 
but  it  is  rather  decadent  at  present.  There 
are  many  of  these  educated  Guatemalans 
who  are  more  or  less  in  sympathy  with 
Protestantism,  but  a fanatical  Romanist 
wife,  or  the  rigid  Puritanism  of  our  move- 
ment or  a certain  social  repugnance  against 
calling  an  Indian  “brother”  have  so  far 
kept  this  class  from  the  fold.  Morally  this 
class  is  what  it  is  everywhere.  A certain 
appearance  of  respectability  is  preserved 
though  often  it  is  little  more  than  appear- 
ance. 

The  hand-workers  are  as  a whole  of 
course  also  nominal  Catholics.  But  if  the 
truth  were  known,  it  would  be  that  about 
all  they  have  to  do  with  the  Church  is  to 
have  their  children  baptized  by  it.  Mar- 
riage is  the  exception  rather  than  the  rule 
among  them,  the  drink  evil  is  a constant 


5 


curse  to  their  lives  and  poverty  keeps  them 
morose  and  sullen.  It  is  among  this  class 
that  Protestantism  has  made  the  greatest 
progress.  On  a typical  Wednesday  night 
we  may  have  fifteen  men  at  the  service. 
Three  carpenters,  two  weavers,  one  saddle- 
maker,  one  whip-maker,  one  macaroni 
maker,  one  dyer,  one  tailor,  one  clerk,  one 
book-keeper,  one  butcher,  one  lawyer  and 
one  photographer.  Two-thirds  of  this 
number  have  been  reclaimed  from  drink 
and  an  impure  life  by  the  Gospel  and  given 
a new  life  in  their  homes  and  business. 

And  last  and  most  important  what  of  the 
Indians?  Morally  they  are  better  than  the 
Ladinos.  As  a rule  they  marry  and  if  they 
consume  great  quantities  of  liquor  they  at 
least  do  not  sell  it.  They  are  naively  relig- 
ious and  so  easily  made  the  prey  of  an 
unscrupulous  priest.  Few  of  the  older  peo- 
ple can  read  and  the  younger  generation 
can  do  so  only  falteringly.  Although  ap- 
parently these  Indians  are  the  stronghold 
of  Catholicism,  they  still  have  their  medi- 
cine men  and  their  arts  of  witchcraft  in 
spite  of  the  opposition  of  the  Church.  In 
more  ways  than  one  they  are  in  the  Old 
Testament  dispensation.  They  have  their 
altars  on  the  high  places  where  they  offer 
fowls,  etc.,  as  sacrifices.  Their  God  is  the 
God  of  the  thunder  and  the  rain,  the  God 
of  wrath  and  judgment.  Even  the  Protest- 
ant Indian  finds  the  Old  Testament  more 
suited  to  his  state  of  mind  than  the  New. 

And  now  what  are  the  agencies  at  work 
in  this  county  for  the  moral  and  religious 
needs  of  these  people?  There  is  of  course 
The  Catholic  Church.  But  she  is  playing 
a losing  game.  The  Government  has  sys- 
tematically fought  her  for  many  years, 
taking  away  some  of  her  most  treasured 
privileges  and  even  infringing  on  what 
many  would  consider  her  rights.  Today 


6 


she  can  have  no  schools,  no  catechetical 
instruction,  no  Church  funerals.  Her 
Churches  are  in  ruins  and  her  clergy 
diminishing  in  number.  This  county  has 
five  priests  (three  of  them  foreigners)  for 
a population  of  perhaps  two  hundred  thou- 
sand. What  strikes  me  about  the  Catholic 
Church  here  is  not  so  much  her  corrup- 
tion as  her  impotence. 

Next  in  order  we  might  mention  The 
Spiritualistic  Society  which  has  a center 
in  Quezaltenango.  These  men  have  the 
Bible  and  some  of  them  appear  to  be  really 
reconciled  with  God  through  Jesus  Christ. 
They  hold  up  the  moral  life  as  worthy  even 
though  they  seem  to  fail  to  give  a motive 
power  to  live  that  life.  In  spite  of  their 
fantastical  claims  and  their  impotence  to 
change  men’s  lives  they  undoubtedly  are 
better  than  nothing  and  help  to  keep  re- 
ligious questions  to  the  fore. 

We  should  not  fail  to  mention  The  Labor 
Unions  or  rather  the  organizations  that 
very  nearly  approximate  the  old  Guilds  of 
the  middle  ages.  They  have  arranged  a 
Sunday  School  for  their  members  to  keep 
them  away  from  the  saloons.  Better  yet, 
leavened  by  their  Protestant  members,  they 
have  been  instrumental  in  closing  the  cock- 
pits and  gambling  houses  of  this  city. 

Last  but  not  least  comes  our  own  Presby- 
terian Mission.  So  far  we  have  done  noth- 
ing for  the  foreign  colony  but  we  hope  to 
begin  services  in  English  and  German  be- 
fore long  and  a confirmation  class  for  the 
children.  It  is  our  hope  that  some  day  we 
may  draw  the  support  of  the  mission  very 
largely  from  the  foreign  Protestants  who 
make  their  living  from  the  people  and  so 
far  have  given  nothing  back  to  them.  We 
have  in  our  Church  some  five  families,  of 
which  one  of  the  parents  is  a German. 
On  August  2 there  were  present  at  the 

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Spanish  service  citizens  of  Austria,  Ger- 
many and  France.  On  August  3rd  they 
were  called  to  the  war.  Let  us  hope  that 
a patriotism,  however  blind,  may  not  make 
them  forget  that  once  they  worshiped  to- 
gether as  brethren. 

Among  the  educated  classes  we  have 
done  very  little.  Our  native  workers  have 
come  from  the  handworkers  and  have  not 
been  able  to  preach  the  Gospel  to  the 
educated  in  the  language  wherein  they 
were  born.  But  one  of  our  elders  comes 
from  this  class  and  can  probably  set  oflf 
the  Gospel  against  Schopenhauer  or  Spen- 
cer better  than  the  average  elder  at  home. 
We  are  not  forgetting  the  “wise”  and 
“mighty”  and  pray  that  they  too  may  learn 
the  riches  of  love  in  Christ  Jesus. 

We  are  at  present  ministering  to  ten 
congregations  of  ladinos  in  the  county,  one 
here  in  the  capital  and  nine  in  smaller 
towns.  In  practically  every  town  the  work 
is  growing  and  encouraging. 

Nearly  every  congregation  has  an 
Indian  or  two  in  it.  But  we  have  only 
one  congregation  of  Indians.  This  con- 
gregation has  grown  faster  and  on  a surer 
basis  we  think  than  any  other.  It  now 
numbers  nearly  a hundred  baptized  with  an 
equal  number  interested  or  on  the  waiting 
list.  It  gives  promise  of  a Christian  Guate- 
mala in  the  future.  If  the  bottom  man  in 
society  is  thoroughly  converted  the  upper 
classes  will  not  resist  long.  The  Chris- 
tianity which  works  from  the  bottom  up 
will  always  be  healthier  than  that  which 
works  from  the  top  down.  The  real  key 
to  the  Guatemala  situation  is  the  Indian 
and  we  rejoice  that  he  is  at  length  turning 
to  the  truth  as  it  is  in  Christ  Jesus. 

Paul  Burgess. 


CHILEAN  COUNTRYMEN 


“In  Peril  from  the 
Heathen” 

Dona  Martina’s  shrewd  old  face  was  all 
aglow.  Was  it  possible  that  her  people 
away  off  on  the  other  side  of  the  mountains 
were  to  have  the  privilege  of  hearing  the 
Gospel,  this  wonderful  Gospel  which  had 
transformed  her  own  life  so  that  she  could 
scarcely  recognize  herself?  Swiftly  her 
mind  reverted  to  the  days  of  her  young 
womanhood  when  she  had  been  employed 
to  sing  and  dance  and  otherwise  make 
merry  on  one  of  the  great  estates,  and  to 
the  shameful  orgies  to  which  these  were 
but  an  accompaniment,  and  of  which  she 
was  the  life  and  center.  Her  dark  face 
flushed  with  the  remembrance,  and  the 
longing  of  her  heart  sprang  to  her  lips  in 
the  half-audible  prayer,  “Lord  Jesus,  help 
me  to  take  Thy  Gospel  to  my  old  com- 
panions.” 

And  so  it  came  about  that  we  went,  four 
of  us,  early  in  April,  to  the  village  known 
as  Beautiful  Valley,  six  hours  by  rail  from 
Valparaiso  plus  five  miles  on  foot,  or,  if 
you  are  in  luck,  on  horseback.  The  day 
was  hot  and  the  third-class  car  packed  to 
suffocation  with  perspiring  humanity  of  the 
lowest  class,  together  with  fowls  of  all 
sorts,  bundles,  baskets,  beer  bottles,  etc. 
The  air  was  festive  if  not  perfumed,  and 
everyone  in  high  spirits.  Some  traveling 
musicians  obligingly  began  to  pick  out  a 
cueca  on  their  guitars  and  the  women  kept 
time  joyfully  with  hands  and  feet  in  the 
unforgetable  rhythm  of  the  native  dance. 
After  six  hours  of  this  environment,  how- 
ever, it  was  with  a sigh  of  relief  and  a 
deep  intake  of  fresh  air  that  we  alighted 
at  the  little  station  where  we  left  the  rail- 


10 


road.  A small  boy  and  a donkey  were 
waiting  for  us,  to  act  as  guide  and  carrier 
for  the  remaining  five  miles,  and  the  baby 
organ,  my  camp  bed  and  a bag  of  books 
were  soon  speedily  made  fast  to  the  don- 
key’s all-enduring  back.  The  town  was 
soon  traversed  and  we  were  beyond  the 
lights.  Our  way  lay  first  obliquely  across 
a dried-up  river  bed,  and  I laughed  to  my- 
self. wishing  that  my  friends  could  see  me, 
as  we  stumbled  along  single  file  over  big 
stones  and  through  sand  ankle  deep,  trying 
to  keep  the  donkey’s  tail  in  sight,  our  only 
hope  of  not  losing  the  way  in  the  pitchy 
darkness. 

After  an  hour  the  wearisome  round  finally 
came  to  an  end,  and  we  were  most  hospita- 
bly received  at  the  home  of  our  evangelist, 
a typical  country  family  of  the  lower  mid- 
dle class.  The  house  consisted  of  two 
rooms,  and  a corner  shop,  where  you  could 
purchase  anything  (in  limited  quantities) 
from  ribbons  and  buttons  to  kerosene  and 
beer.  When  we  had  finished  dinner  one  of 
the  daughters  whispered  to  me,  “Couldn’t 
you  play  on  the  little  organ?”  so  with  all 
alacrity  it  was  set  up  and  hymn  books  pro- 
duced. For  two  hours  we  sang  hymns, 
until  I was  ready  to  fall  off  the  chair  with 
weariness.  But  Chilean  hospitality  would 
forbid  the  suggestion  of  bed-time  before 
midnight  and  a cup  of  strong  coffee.  In 
the  meantime  I had  been  making  silent 
calculations:  The  family  consisted  of 

father  and  mother,  a grown-up  son,  four 
young  women  and  two  children,  and  there 
was  only  one  room  besides  the  one  in 
which  we  ate,  which  also  contained  two 
beds,  and  we  were  four.  Where  were  we 
to  sleep?  The  problem  was  solved,  how- 
ever, for  Chilean  hospitality  has  no  limits, 
and  my  little  camp  bed  was  set  up  in  the 


11 


corner  grocery  between  the  counter  and 
the  wall,  where  I slept  as  well  as  in  my 
own  cosy  room  at  home. 

Little  by  little  we  began  to  hear  of  the 
persecutions  which  this  family  had  already 
been  enduring  at  the  hands  of  the  priests 
since  it  had  been  rumored  that  the  evan- 
gelists were  coming.  Immediately  the  vil- 
lage priest  had  called  a “mission”  of  some 
Redemptionist  Fathers.  Gathering  the  en- 
tire country-side  into  the  open  square  in 
front  of  the  village  church  (which  was  not 
large  enough  to  hold  them),  the  priests 
compelled  the  people  to  kneel,  and  with 
lighted  candles  in  their  hands,  and  making 
the  sign  of  the  cross,  swear  to  heaven  by 
the  Holy  Virgin  and  all  the  saints,  that  they 
would  cross  the  threshold  of  no  evangelical 
service,  nor  admit  any  heretic  into  their 
houses,  and  that  they  would,  if  possible 
run  them  out  of  town  with  sticks.  Having 
thus  guarded  their  flock  from  heresy  and 
error,  they  awaited  developments,  confi- 
dent that  when  we  came  we  should  preach 
to  empty  benches.  Imagine  their  conster- 
nation, therefore,  when  night  after  night  of 
our  stay  our  little  chapel  was  packed  to 
overflowing  with  the  very  people  who  made 
these  vows!  For  three  nights  we  showed 
views  of  the  life  of  Christ  and  preached 
the  simple  Gospel,  and  for  three  nights 
the  people  listened  with  all  their  ears  and 
went  away  saying:  “Why,  the  Gospel  is 
not  at  all  as  we  have  been  led  to  believe — 
it  is  beautiful!”  The  last  night,  however, 
there  were  mutterings  of  the  coming  storm. 
A group  gathered  outside,  incited  by  the 
priests,  and  laid  a plot.  “Let  them  come 
again  if  they  dare,”  they  said;  “we  shall  be 
ready  for  them.”  We  afterwards  learned 
that  the  plan  was  to  attack  the  chapel, 
kill  the  men  of  our  party,  and  carry  off  the 
women. 


12 


At  the  end  of  a fortnight  we  went  back, 
this  time  without  the  magic  lantern,  trust- 
ing to  the  power  of  the  spoken  Word.  The 
first  meeting  was  well  attended  but  full  of 
disorder.  The  front  seats  were  filled  with 
people  who  were  interested  and  wanted  to 
listen,  but  the  back  seats  and  the  door  were 
in  possession  of  the  enemy,  and  it  was 
almost  impossible  for  the  preacher  to  make 
himself  heard.  Knives  and  pistols  were 
handled  freely,  and  the  evangelist  at  the 
door  menaced  with  blows  when  he  tried 
to  preserve  a semblance  of  order.  A little 
window  near  where  I sat  at  the  little  organ 
was  broken  open  over  my  head,  while  the 
young  girls  were  singing  a hymn,  and  we 
were  deluged  with  dirt  and  gravel,  but  it 
might  have  been  rose  leaves  for  all  the 
attention  we  paid  to  it.  I was  so  proud 
of  those  girls,  who  never  wavered  until 
the  hymn  was  finished.  We  carried  the 
service  to  its  conclusion,  although  at  times 
the  preacher  could  scarcely  be  heard  above 
the  din.  Our  evangelist  counseled  us  to 
wait  until  the  crowd  had  dispersed  before 
leaving  the  chapel,  but  the  group  outside 
had  no  intention  of  dispersing,  and  so  the 
pastor,  who  is  a stalwart  six-footer,  taking 
the  bright  acetylene  lamp  in  one  hand  and 
the  baby  organ  in  the  other,  presented 
himself  at  the  door.  In  the  bright  light, 
the  evil  doers  scudded  to  the  other  side 
of  the  narrow  street,  in  a vain  attempt  to 
remain  incognito,  trying  to  hide  their  faces 
by  pulled  down  hats  and  lifted  ponchos. 
With  kindness  and  firmness  the  pastor  ad- 
dressed them,  expressing  his  surprise  at 
their  change  _ of  attitude.  “We  have  not 
come,’  he  said,  “to  offend  anyone,  nor  to 
attack  his  beliefs.  We  have  come  to  preach 
the  Gospel  of  Jesus  Christ  in  its  purity 
and  simplicity,  because  there  are  people 
here  who  want  to  hear  it,  and  who  have 


13 


invited  us.  If  it  does  not  please  you,  you 
are  not  compelled  to  listen.”  While  he 
was  yet  speaking,  they  began  to  stone  us, 
and  as  we  turned  to  go  to  the  house,  a 
half-square  distant,  the  stones  flew  thick 
and  fast,  and  later  it  seemed  as  though  the 
roof  would  fall,  as  they  took  vengeance 
upon  it. 

The  next  morning,  Sabbath,  the  men 
rode  to  the  nearest  town  to  claim  police 
protection,  and  we  were  assured  that  it 
would  be  forthcoming  for  the  evening 
service.  At  the  appointed  hour,  the  prefect 
himself  and  another  official  arrived  on  their 
splendid  horses,  and  the  service  began  in 
perfect  quietness.  The  street  was  empty, 
and  the  night  as  quiet  as  a summer’s  day. 
We  sang  and  prayed  and  read  the  Scrip- 
tures with  perfect  attention,  but  the  sermon 
was  scarcely  begun  when  the  sound  of  re- 
ceding horses  fell  upon  our  ears.  The 
officials,  who  had  promised  to  remain  until 
the  end,  had  gone!  And  simultaneously, 
from  the  shadows  where  they  had  been  lurk- 
ing, sprang  forty  armed  ruffians,  and  with 
yells  of  derision,  made  for  the  door  as  one 
man.  It  was  impossible  to  proceed  with 
the  service,  and  under  cover  of  the  din  we 
hastily  consulted  as  to  what  to  do.  We 
remembered  the  plot,  and  our  hearts  were 
anguished  for  those  four  pretty  girls,  the 
daughters  of  our  hosts.  Old  Dona  Martina 
had  little  to  fear  at  their  hands,  and  even 
the  most  frenzied  mob  will  think  twice  be- 
fore laying  hands  upon  an  American,  but 
the  girls — how  should  we  protect  them? 
To  try  to  escape  by  the  back  door  across 
the  fields  was  madness.  There  was  no  one 
to  send  with  them  to  the  safety  of  their 
own  house.  No!  We  must  remain  where 
we  were  and  try  to  shut  the  door,  and 
await  help.  A swiftly  thrown  missile 
aimed  at  the  pastor’s  head  fell  in  the  center 


14 


of  the  room,  having  missed  its  mark  by 
hitting  one  of  the  beams,  and  proved  to 
be  a tin  can  filled  with  unspeakable  filth. 
It  turned  upside  down,  however,  on  their 
own  number!  Having  retired  for  a moment 
to  arrange  the  next  number  on  the  program, 
we  managed  to  shut  the  door,  but  it  was 
without  latch  or  bolt.  A strong  pole  was 
braced  against  it,  and  it  required  six  men 
to  hold  it  steady  under  the  onslaught  of 
our  tormentors,  who  came  against  it  like 
an  avalanche,  with  stones,  bottles,  knives 
and  pistols,  and  it  seemed  as  though  it  must 
give  way.  For  nearly  an  hour  we  waited 
and  prayed,  while  the  mob  raged  outside, 
expecting  momentarily  to  see  the  low 
thatch  roof  blaze  over  our  heads  from  the 
cannon  firecrackers,  or  to  see  the  faithful 
group  at  the  door  pierced  by  the  enemy’s 
bullets.  And  our  evangelist,  where  was  he? 
He  had  disappeared,  and  no  hand  was  lifted 
in  our  behalf. 

In  the  excitement  of  the  attack,  our 
brave  evangelist  at  the  door  realized  on  the 
instant  that  the  day  was  lost  and  that  our 
one  hope,  under  God,  lay  in  overtaking  the 
police.  Creeping  stealthily  away  from  the 
door  in  an  opposite  direction  from  that 
which  he  planned  to  take,  lest  he  should  be 
watched,  crawling  under  barbed  wire  fences, 
and  across  dark  fields,  he  finally  reached 
the  main  road  at  a point  considerably  below 
the  chapel,  and  ran  like  a hare  to  a house 
a mile  distant,  where  he  had  sympathizers. 
With  failing  breath  he  begged  a horse,  and 
waiting  for  neither  saddle  nor  bridle,  threw 
himself  upon  it  and  flew  like  the  wind  in 
the  direction  the  police  had  taken.  But 
alas!  they  had  already  reached  the  river, 
and  pursuit  was  useless.  Desperately  he 
turned  his  horse  again  toward  the  chapel, 
his  one  hope  now  to  find  the  official  whose 
duty  it  was  to  patrol  the  village,  and  as  he 

15 


searched  up  and  down  through  all  the  lanes 
and  narrow  streets,  he  heard  what  seemed 
in  the  darkness  to  be  rifle  shots.  “Oh 
God!”  he  cried,  “I  am  too  late;  they  will 
all  be  dead  before  I can  get  help.”  Urging 
his  jaded  beast  to  its  limit  he  rushed  for- 
ward and  discovered  the  missing  policeman, 
half  drunk,  coming  leisurely  out  of  a saloon. 
With  difficulty  he  made  him  understand 
the  necessity  for  haste,  and  at  last,  after 
what  seemed  an  eternity  to  all  of  us,  we 
heard  the  welcome  sound  of  galloping 
hoofs.  We  were  saved!  Our  tormentors, 
surprised  on  the  rear,  swung  sullenly  back 
away  from  the  bright  light  which  again 
illumined  our  darkness.  It  was  a dramatic 
moment.  Flinging  himself  down  from  his 
panting  horse,  our  evangelist,  who  is  by 
nature  the  gentlest  of  men,  addressed  the 
now  cringing  mob:  “This  is  the  end,”  he 
said;  “we  have  borne  your  taunts,  your 
jeers,  your  insults,  your  threats  and  even 
your  stones,  with  patience,  because  we 
have  come  here  to  help  you.  But  it  is 
the  end.  I know  you  everyone  by  name, 
and  tomorrow,  even  tomorrow,  I will  de- 
nounce you  before  the  Judge  of  crime.” 
And  then  the  pastor:  “It  is  a disgrace  to 
our  country.  Not  even  in  Central  Africa 
could  such  things  happen.  It  makes  one 
ashamed  to  be  a Chilean!” 

Summoned  before  the  Judge,  they  one 
and  all  denied  roundly  any  participation 
whatever  in  the  night’s  doings,  and  the 
Judge,  a veritable  Pilate,  would  fain  have 
washed  his  hands  of  the  matter.  Calling 
Pastor  Krauss  aside  privately,  he  confessed 
that  in  conscience  he  knew  we  were  in  the 
right,  “But  man  alive,”  he  added,  “you  don’t 
know  these  people;  they  are  desperados, 
and  capable  of  killing  you  all  at  a moment’s 
notice.”  “Even  so,”  was  the  brave  response, 
“but  remember  that  for  everyone  of  us  they 


16 


kill,  ten  will  rise  up  to  come  in  our  places 
to  preach  the  Gospel  of  Jesus  Christ.  And 
knowing  these  people  as  you  do,  why  do 
you  not  admonish  them?  We  are  not  seek- 
ing retribution,  but  only  the  liberty  of  wor- 
ship which  the  State  accords  us.”  Thus 
pressed,  the  Judge  again  summoned  the  cul- 
prits before  him  and  reprimanded  them 
soundly,  to  their  evident  dismay,  for  had 
not  they  and  the  priests  arranged  every- 
thing beforehand  in  their  own  way? 

Poor  people!  One  cannot  find  it  in  his 
heart  to  blame  them.  As  they  have  been 
taught,  so  are  they.  Their  hearts  are  as 
wax  in  the  hands  of  their  priests,  who  might 
have  made  of  the  Chileans  a model  nation, 
had  they  educated  instead  of  exploited 
them,  had  they  taught  them  the  word  of 
God  instead  of  the  foolishness  and  lies 
which  they  themselves  mock  at.  We  have  con- 
tinued our  visits  every  fortnight  to  Beautiful 
Valley,  and  although  the  persecution  is  still 
keen,  we  have  had  the  great  joy  of  seeing 
whole  families  turn  to  the  Lord.  Our  meet- 
ings are  crowded  and  the  little  children  sing 
in  the  streets,  “ Wonderful  Words  of  Life.” 

Florence  E.  Smith, 
Valparaiso,  Chile. 


17 


;roup  of  laborers  at  breakfast  on  coffee  plantation  NEAR  BUCARAMANGA,  COLOMBIA 


Pioneers  in  a Great 
Land 

The  missionaries  in  Brazil  have  felt  that 
Christian  education  is  the  key  to  the  present 
situation  of  the  work  here.  We  may  well 
say  that  we  have  an  open  door  here,  not 
only  in  the  sense  that  there  is  practically 
no  religious  persecution,  but  that  the  peo- 
ple are  most  anxious  to  learn  the  ways  and 
methods  of  the  North  Americans  because 
they  have  seen  the  efficiency  of  these  in 
the  missionary  schools  and  in  the  business 
and  technically  trained  men  who  have  come 
down  here. 

The  people  frankly  recognize  their  back- 
wardness and  are  ready  to  make  great 
sacrifices  that  they  and  their  children  may 
have  an  education.  But  best  of  all,  I have 
heard  many  expressions  of  appreciation  of 
the  fact  that  it  is  most  important  that  the 
education  be  moral  as  well  as  intellectual. 
A city  official,  when  it  was  mentioned  in  his 
presence  that  Castro  had  been  singularly 
fortunate  in  getting  a regiment  stationed 
here  and  in  having  the  Instituto  Christao, 
at  once  replied,  “There  is  no  comparison 
between  the  two.  The  regiment  brings 
vice,  but  the  Instituto  brings  only  virtue.” 
He  is  not  a “Crente”  but  one  of  our  good 
friends. 

We  have  been  shown  the  greatest  kind- 
ness and  been  helped  in  many  ways  by  the 
leading  business  men  and  officials  of  the 
city.  We  have  received  offers  of  land  (this 
before  we  had  bought),  money,  and  free 
labor.  The  people  have  shown  a sustained 
interest  in  the  project  from  the  start.  We 
have  many  visitors  and  constant  inquiries 
as  to  how  the  work  progresses,  and  when 
we  shall  be  able  to  receive  pupils.  In  fact 


19 


we  anticipate  our  greatest  difficulty  to  be 
along  this  line — how  to  keep  the  number 
down  until  we  shall  be  able  to  accommo- 
date somewhere  near  the  number  who  wish 
to  come.  We  want  most  of  all  to  establish 
a Christian  atmosphere  that  will  leave  an 
indelible  impress  on  every  student  who 
comes  to  us.  This  must  grow  with  the 
school. 

As  to  our  plant  and  problem,  we  have 
600  acres  of  good  land,  30  head  of  cattle, 
4 horses  and  a team  of  mules.  We  have 
put  up  some  cheap  wooden  buildings  and 
are  erecting  a two-and-one-half-story  brick 
building  40  x 40  feet.  There  is  nowhere  near 
enough  money  at  present  available  to  com- 
plete the  building,  but  we  can  finish  some 
of  the  rooms  roughly  so  that  they  can  be 
used  and  then,  as  we  are  able,  we  will 
finish  the  rest.  The  school  is  beautifully 
located  on  a main  traveled  road  two  and 
one-half  miles  from  town.  The  climate 
here  is  almost  ideal. 

We  have  already  accepted  two  young 
men  who  did  not  wish  to  wait  until  the 
opening  of  the  school,  and  they  are  to 
work  on  the  buildings,  etc.,  until  we  open. 
There  are  many  others  who  are  simply 
waiting  for  us.  Ours  will  be  the  only 
school  of  its  kind  in  this  part  of  the  coun- 
try. 

We  expect  to  give  a practical  training  in 
the  common  trades,  paying  especial  atten- 
tion to  farming  and  domestic  science.  Our 
aim  is  to  train  up  efficient  Christian  work- 
ers. Along  this  line  we  will  give  thorough 
Bible  training  and  teach  the  theory  and 
practice  of  modern  Pedagogics.  From  those 
who  come  it  is  hoped  that  we  can  choose 
some  who  will  dedicate  themselves  to  the 
preaching  of  the  Gospel. 

It  is  a wonderful  opportunity  that  we 
have,  as  this  country  is  just  in  the  be- 


20 


ginning'  of  its  history.  It  is  bound  to  have 
a great  future.  It  is  already  beginning 
to  feel  its  own  possibilities.  We  are  among 
the  pioneers  in  a great  virgin  land.  The 
Brazilians  modeled  their  government  on 
ours  when  they  founded  “Os  Estados 
Unidos  Do  Brazil.’’  They  are  still  looking 
toward  us  for  help  and  expect  great  things 
of  us — their  attitude  is  that  of  a pupil  to- 
wards his  teacher. 

Save  in  the  state  of  Sao  Paulo,  for  the 
most  part,  the  educational  system  in  Brazil 
is  very  crude.  As  the  interest  in  educa- 
tion has  grown,  thousands  of  dollars  have 
been  spent  in  fine  big  school-  buildings,  but 
the  great  difficulty  is  to  get  teachers.  I 
saw  one  fine  big  building  which  had  been 
completed  for  some  time,  but  had  never 
been  used  because  there  was  no  teacher 
to  be  had.  In  one  of  the  principal  cities 
of  the  state  I have  often  passed  a school 
house  crowded  with  boys,  in  front  of  whom, 
terrible  to  contemplate,  sat  a ferocious 
looking  man  with  a long  stick  which  from 
time  to  time  he  brought  down  on  the  desk 
with  a tremendous  thwack  to  recall  the 
wandering  eyes  and  arms  that  had  such 
a tendency  to  stray  out  of  the  windows. 
The  buzz  of  their  many  voices  would  in- 
stinctively rise  with  the  fall  of  the  rod 
and  a new  impetus  was  thus  given  to  learn- 
ing. Amusing,  but  tragic. 

For  the  most  part,  agriculture  is  but 
little  in  advance  of  the  methods  of  the 
North  American  Indian  in  his  primitive 
state.  Every  four  or  five  years  the  timber 
land  is  cut,  burned  off  and,  with  an  iron 
pointed  stick,  the  corn  and  beans  are 
planted.  Native  artisans  are  very  few  and 
most  of  them  are  quite  inferior.  It  is 
readily  seen  that  we  can  do  a great  service 
for  this  people  and  win  a lasting  place  in 
their  lives.  The  practical  training  that  we 


21 


hope  to  give  will  be  a long  step  toward 
a self-supporting  native  church.  It  will 
increase  many  fold  the  earning  power  of 
our  members.  We  hope  to  be  able  to  hold 
a two  weeks’  conference  each  year  for  lay 
workers.  These  usually  have  had  few  edu- 
cational advantages  and  their  work  of 
caring  for  the  congregations  during  the 
long  absences  of  the  Pastor  is  most  im- 
portant. 

Our  greatest  need  is  the  prayers  of  our 
fellow  workers  in  the  home  land  and  that 
they  do  all  in  their  power  to  make  it  pos- 
sible for  the  Lord  of  the  Harvest  to  answer 
their  prayers. 

H.  P.  Midkiff. 


22 


MEXICAN  NATIVE  PASTOR  AND  WIFE 


The  Mexican  Minister  and 
the  Protestant  Opportunity 

The  landing  of  the  American  troops  in 
Vera  Cruz  put  the  American  and  the  American 
missionary  in  Mexico  in  a serious  situation. 
The  Mexican  minister,  however,  has  been  in 
a serious  situation  since  the  army  revolt 
under  Felix  Diaz  and  the  coming  of  Huerta 
into  power  in  February  of  1913.  He  is  nat- 
urally liberal  in  politics  and  his  sympathy  is 
with  the  Madero  movement  for  a larger  place 
for  the  common  people.  So  he  was  nat- 
urally looked  upon  with  distrust  in  all  places 
held  by  the  Federal  army.  The  utmost  cau- 
tion and  non-participation  in  a public  way 
saved  a large  number  from  molestation  by 
the  Federal  forces.  There  were  others,  how- 
ever, who  were  such  pronounced  liberals 
and  partisans  of  the  Madero  movement 
that  there  was  a grave  question  as  to  their 
personal  safety. 

Some  four  men  in  Northern  Mexico,  feel- 
ing themselves  to  be  in  danger,  left  their 
pastoral  charges  and  joined  the  revolu- 
tionary cause  in  clerical  or  active  military 
operations  in  the  field.  The  varying  for- 
tunes of  the  revolution  would  sometimes 
bring  one  to  his  home  and  work,  but  it 
has  resulted  so  far  in  the  loss  of  four  men 
from  our  work.  Two  other  men  have  taken 
government  positions.  New  elements  are 
in  control  and  they  are  dependent  on  get- 
ting new  men  of  intelligence  and  ability 
to  carry  on  the  new  government.  Just 
how  long  these  men  will  be  lost  to  the 
work  is  not  possible  to  say  at  present. 
In  their  new  positions,  however,  they  will 
be  able  to  use  governmental  influence  in 
favor  of  Protestantism. 

During  the  permanence  of  the  Huerta 


government,  some  of  the  ministers  had  to 
endure  extra  pressure  from  the  Catholic 
clergy.  This  was  especially  so  in  the 
southern  states.  In  some  places  there  was 
the  preaching  of  a holy  war  because  of  the 
American  landing  in  Vera  Cruz.  The 
evangelical  ministers,  being  connected  with 
American  missions,  were  talked  of  as 
traitors.  Our  minister  in  Campeche  got 
up  an  elaborate  patriotic  program  on  the 
anniversary  of  the  death  of  Juarez  to  prove 
the  contrary.  One  worker  in  a small  town 
in  Yucatan  was  set  upon  as  “ayancado” 
(one  taken  up  with  the  Yankees),  and  was 
compelled  to  leave  his  home  for  two 
months.  The  village  priest  was  the  leader 
in  the  movement.  During  his  absence  one 
of  his  two  small  boys  died. 

The  pastor  at  Merida  writes,  speaking  of 
his  district:  “The  work  is  being  main- 
tained but  does  not  advance.  The  Catho- 
lic clergy  here  are  ‘de  vara  alta’  (have 
the  rod  lifted  up).  They  are  molesting  the 
evangelicals  as  much  as  they  can.  The 
other  day  they  slapped  and  struck  an  evan- 
gelical in  the  town  of  Cacalchen  because  he 
did  not  want  to  kiss  the  keys  of  St.  Peter. 
He  went  to  make  complaint  to  the  chief 
authorities,  but  was  told  that  it  was  a 
Catholic  town  and  that  he  (the  evangelical) 
could  go  with  his  Protestantism  to  some 
other  place.” 

An  effort  was  made  to  exclude  all  the 
Protestant  teachers  from  the  schools  in 
Coahuila,  but  since  the  revolution  has 
triumphed,  the  schools  are  open  and  the 
Protestant  element  has  been  given  the 
preference.  All  the  Protestant  teachers 
have  work. 

A Catholic  country  with  many  of  its 
Catholic  churches  closed,  numbers  of  its 
priests  expelled,  and  others  in  seclusion 
through  fear  is  a novel  situation.  This  is 


25 


the  present  situation  in  Mexico.  In  one 
state  capital,  a Catholic  church  has  been 
taken  over  for  a Masonic  Temple  and  an- 
other, a new  edifice,  has  been  converted 
into  a hall  for  the  meetings  of  the  state 
congress.  The  keys  of  other  churches  are 
in  the  hands  of  governmental  authorities 
and  at  this  writing  have  not  been  turned 
over  to  the  clergy. 

The  outstanding  fact  that  accounts  for 
all  this  is  that  the  Catholic  church  had 
aligned  itself  with  the  . Huerta  government 
and  had  given  millions  of  its  treasure  to- 
wards its  success.  The  new  elements  in 
control  look  upon  the  Catholic  church 
therefore  in  the  same  light  as  the  Huerta 
government  is  looked  upon.  A traitorous 
aggregation  seeking  to  seize  the  reins  of 
government  through  force  and  assassina- 
tion. 

The  masses  of  the  people  are  in  sym- 
pathy with  the  revolutionary  efforts  of 
Madero  and  Carranza,  and  therefore  it 
seems  that  it  may  be  a long  time  before 
the  Catholic  church  comes  into  favor.  In 
fact  there  seems  to  be  no  way  for  it  to 
come  into  the  public  favor  that  it  has  long- 
been  losing,  except  it  apply  itself,  as  it 
has  not  in  the  past,  to  religious  and  social 
betterment  of  the  conditions  of  the  people. 

The  situation  gives  the  evangelical 
churches  working  in  Mexico  a more  un- 
trammeled opportunity  than  ever  before. 
There  is  a public  awakening  caused  by  the 
war  that  will  no  doubt  make  people  more 
receptive  to  evangelical  teachings.  A min- 
ister, commenting  on  the  fact  that  the  mis- 
sionaries would  return  just  as  soon  as  the 
political  situation  was  cleared  up,  writes: 
“I  am  very  glad  to  get  this  word,  as  there 
is  a certain  awakening  in  religious  matters, 
which  we  must  take  advantage  of  for  the 
sacred  cause  of  our  Lord  Jesus,  especially 


26 


if  the  union  of  the  churches  is  to  be  a fact.” 

The  pastor  of  the  Presbyterian  church  in 
Monterey,  writes:  “The  Lord  is  opening 
wide  the  gate  for  Christianity  in  Mexico. 
Let  us  make  use  of  our  opportunities.” 

The  pastor  of  our  church  in  San  Juan 
Bautista,  realizing  the  great  needs  of  his 
country,  as  revealed  by  the  civil  strife, 
writes:  “The  only  thing  that  can  bring 

prosperity  to  our  country  is  the  Gospel  of 
Christ;  learned  and  put  in  practice.” 

Another  pastor  writes:  “I  trust  in  the 
Lord  that  there  will  be  a great  change  in 
public  affairs  and  that  we  will  be  able  to 
dedicate  ourselves  with  more  tranquillity  to 
the  holy  work  that  is  in  our  hands.  Would 
you  help  us?  Come  with  enthusiasm.” 

Charles  Petran. 


Form  No.  2209. 


Nov.  1914 


